Recently, the display performances of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) have been improved to the point that more and more manufacturers adopt LCD panels as TV monitors, for example. The viewing angle characteristic of LCDs has been improved to a certain degree but not satisfactorily in some respects. Among other things, there is still a high demand for improvement of the viewing angle characteristic of an LCD using a vertical alignment liquid crystal layer (which is sometimes called a “VA mode LCD”).
A VA mode LCD, which is currently used for a TV set with a big screen, for example, adopts a multi-domain structure, in which multiple liquid crystal domains are formed in a single pixel region, to improve the viewing angle characteristic. An MVA mode is often adopted as a method of forming such a multi-domain structure. Specifically, according to the MVA mode, an alignment control structure is provided on one of the two substrates, which face each other with a vertical alignment liquid crystal layer interposed between them, so as to contact with the liquid crystal layer, thereby forming multiple domains with mutually different alignment directions (i.e., tilt directions), the number of which is typically four. As the alignment control structure, a slit (as an opening) or a rib (as a projection structure) may be provided for an electrode, thereby creating an anchoring force from both sides of the liquid crystal layer.
If a slit or a rib is adopted, however, the anchoring force will be applied onto liquid crystal molecules non-uniformly within a pixel region because the slit or rib has a linear structure unlike the situation where the pretilt directions are defined by an alignment film in a conventional TN mode LCD. As a result, the response speed may have a distribution unintentionally. In addition, since the transmittance of light will decrease in the areas with the slits or ribs, the luminance of the screen will decrease, too.                Patent Document No. 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 11-133429        Patent Document No. 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 11-352486        